Issues Discussion

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Just in time ICT Teaching versus just in case. How much time should you spend on skills versus curriculum? Can you always teach skills in context?
  • Skills not used/ practised are forgotten.
  • Meet kids needs as they arrive.
  • Kids need to see a purpose for the skill.
  • It can be good to cover some general skills that cover a lot of different programs.
  • Some of these general skills could be typing, internet safety, and file management.
  • Don't focus on bells and whistles - think about the content.
How can you avoid 'busy work' and encourage higher level thinking?
  • Be well planned and have reviewed appropriate resources/ sites etc
  • Knowing where you are planning to head with activities
  • Use ICT as a tool as part of the curriculum rather than a stand alone.
  • Tie it in with your current inquiry topic.
  • Having an authentic context for the work.
  • Be responsive to student questions - don't place limits on them.
  • Provide high expectations/ models of where you can go and what you can do with ICT.
  • Allow the kids to be experts (teacher doesn't always have to know more)
  • Have an awareness of what is out there.
  • Know your students and what their needs are.
  • Find user-friendly apps that help children focus on the content not the look/ format.
How do you plan for the use of ICT? Do you start from the curriculum or the needs of the children?
  • Children's needs should be the centre of education: school plan, curriculum, professional development, and software/ ICT.
  • Start from the curriculum in school plan and tie into the current topic and then work out how to meet the needs of the children within this context.
  • Adapt the programme to the needs of the children.
  • Combine the curriculum with the needs of children.
How can you manage equipment/ network failures?
  • Turn it off and go out for PE!
  • Find your ICT geek (unless they are teaching right then :)
  • Go back to it later
  • Go home and have a cold beer
  • Save websites to the computer so you can use them offline
  • Make sure work is saved to the desktop/ server regularly
  • Try refreshing the page.
  • Throw the equipment out the window!
  • Have a back up plan
  • Know the basics of how to troubleshoot.
  • Have patience!!
One/ two computer classrooms - how to manage?
  • Use a portable data projector.
  • Set up a roster
  • Send kids around other classes
  • Buy more computers on TradeMe (like Nigel does!)
  • Use kids as experts to teach other kids.
  • Have longer time frame to computer or shorter tasks.
  • Have cooperative groups/ buddies on computer
  • Not every child has to do every activity.
Ideas for managing suite/ pod?
  • Have a school timetable
  • Children paired/ shared
  • Blank booking form for pod
  • Have lesson well planned in advance
  • Have a buddy classroom to support programme
  • Be flexible with your class timetable